Girls soccer: Crystal Lake Central earns critical FVC victory over Dundee-Crown

CARPENTERSVILLE – Brooklynn Carlson screamed when she scored her second goal against Dundee-Crown on Tuesday.

Not only did the Crystal Lake Central forward’s goal give her team a two-goal lead with less than two minutes left in the match, it sealed a 3-1 win in a critical Fox Valley Conference matchup that featured three yellow cards in the second half.

After going through a battle like the one the Tigers had Tuesday, Carlson couldn’t help but show her emotions.

“I was so happy,” Carlson said. “I remember after I scored I screamed, ‘Let’s go.’ It felt good to be on top 3-1.

Crystal Lake Central (9-2, 4-1 FVC) and Dundee-Crown (8-4, 3-2) entered Tuesday’s match tied at the top of the FVC with McHenry. Although players and coaches from both teams knew each conference match was important, they also knew a key win toward a conference title was at stake Tuesday.

The teams moved the ball around the field as they tried to get a feel for the match for the first 10 minutes, but the Tigers struck first when Carlson scored off a free kick pass from Sam Sander with 30:16 left in the first half.

[ Photos: Crystal Lake Central vs. Dundee-Crown girls soccer ]

Central kept up the pressure for much of the first half, and Lizzie Gray scored off a rebound from D-C goalkeeper Giselle Mata with 14:01 left in the first half.

D-C turned it around in the second half, switching top scorer Berkley Mensik from the top of the Chargers’ formation to the middle after the team struggled to get the ball to her in the first half. Mensik started to create more chances in the second half and hit a corner kick that Katherine Raby headed in to make it 2-1 with 36:43 left in the match.

The teams continued to battle as the Chargers kept up their intensity and got good looks that Tigers goalkeeper Addison Cleary kept knocking away.

Central earned a free kick after Mensik picked up a yellow card, and Carlson knocked in her second goal off a free kick pass from Katilin Gaunaurd with 1:57 left in the match.

“The girls showed their mental toughness and ability to not get down no matter what’s going on on the field,” Central coach Sarah Fack said. “No matter the circumstances, they’re able to stick with it as a team, stay positive and find a way, and they found a way to get three goals. It was a nice result for them.”

The Chargers showed a different intensity in the second half after not looking sharp for much of the first. Mensik created different opportunities, but the Tigers made sure to take her out of the match as much as possible by shifting the defense so they could limit the passing lanes for the Chargers’ star player.

Ultimately, a 2-0 hole was too much to overcome.

“I thought we were a totally different team in the second half, so for us, it’s stacking two halves together and not being down,” D-C coach Rob Moulton said. “It’s hard to be down 2-0 and start to play.”

D-C will host McHenry on Thursday, while Central will host Crystal Lake South on the same day.

With Tuesday’s win and McHenry’s overtime loss to Hampshire on Tuesday, the Tigers are alone in first place in the FVC with four matches to play.

Although Tuesday’s win was a big step for the Tigers as they try to win a conference title, they know there’s still work left to be done before they can celebrate.

“It was nice to get the win,” Fack said. “We still have plenty of games left, but we knew it was important.”